12 Year of the Snake Activity Ideas for Chinese New Year
2025 is the Year of the Wood Snake – a symbol of wisdom, creativity, and transformation. If you’re celebrating Chinese New Year with your children and looking for Year of the Snake activity ideas, we’ve got you covered with 12 fun snake-themed activities they’ll love. From colourful crafts to playful snake-themed games, these ideas will help you mark the occasion and sneak in a bit of fun learning too!
You may also be interested in: 8 ways to learn about Chinese New Year incl. FREE activity pack!
The Story of the Snake in the Chinese Zodiac
According to Chinese folklore, the Jade Emperor wanted to assign animals to each year, so he called all the animals to a race. The first twelve animals to cross the river would earn a spot in the Zodiac calendar.
The Snake, though not the fastest, used its clever thinking to hitch a ride on the Horse’s hoof. As the Horse galloped toward the finish line, the Snake slithered ahead at the last moment to claim sixth place.
So, what can we learn from the Snake? This story is a wonderful reminder of the power of strategy and creativity and a great way to talk with children about how using your brain can sometimes be just as important as being the fastest or the strongest.
Symbolism of the Snake: The Snake is often associated with transformation, wisdom, and adaptability. The way a snake sheds its skin, reminds us of the beauty of growth and change and is a perfect conversation starter for talking to children about how we all grow; whether it’s learning something new, facing challenges, how we change as we grow older or even changing how we think about things. The Snake’s ability to renew itself reminds us that we can always grow, no matter how old we are.
You can learn more about the story of the Chinese zodiac and enjoy free Chinese New Year activities in our activity pack.
12 Activity Ideas to Celebrate the Year of the Snake
In Chinese culture, the number 12 symbolises harmony and completeness – just like the 12 animals in the Zodiac. This year, we’re celebrating with 12 fun, creative, and educational activities inspired by the Snake’s wisdom and transformation.
- Transform Your Space for Chinese New Year
- Snake-Themed Yoga
- Snack Like a Snake
- Sculpt Your Snake
- Slithering Snake Relay
- Snake Wisdom Scavenger Hunt
- Snake-Themed Word Search
- Grow Your Snake Wisdom
- Snake Transformation Art
- Make a Snake Tangraminal
- Snake Bookmarks
- Snake Growth Chart
1. Transform Your Space For Chinese New Year
Celebrate the Snake’s connection to transformation by turning a room into a Chinese New Year celebration space. Hang paper snakes, red and gold lanterns, and banners that children can make themselves. This activity combines creativity with cultural learning and sets the stage for your celebrations.
Top Tip: Red and gold are considered lucky colours in Chinese culture – make sure to include them in your decorations! You can use the free Chinese lantern template in our FREE Chinese New Year activity pack.
2. Snake Yoga
Get moving with snake-themed yoga poses! Try slithering like a snake on the floor or practising the “Cobra Pose” (Bhujangasana). Encourage children to stretch and move like snakes, focusing on flowing movements, deep breaths and don’t forget hissing sound effects “ssssssss”.
A moment to reflect: While doing this activity, take a moment to reflect with your child on how snakes stay grounded yet flexible and how this makes them so adaptable.
3. Snack Like a Snake
Turn snack time into a creative activity by making a snake out of fruit slices or vegetables. Use banana, kiwi and strawberry or cucumber rounds to form the body and add cherry tomatoes for eyes. This activity not only makes a healthy treat but also encourages creativity and fine motor skills.
Add a Learning Twist: Ask children to create patterns with the fruit or solve simple maths problems like counting the pieces or adding and subtracting slices.
4. Sculpt Your Chinese New Year Snake
Bring out the modelling clay or salt dough and let children sculpt their own snakes. They can experiment with length, texture, and unique designs while strengthening their fine motor skills.
Creative Fun: Challenge them to make patterned snakes and use the opportunity to explain how every snake’s skin is unique – just like people!
5. Snake Slither Relay
Set up a slithering obstacle course! Children can “slither” like snakes through hoops, under chairs, and over cushions. It’s a fun way to promote physical coordination and encourages them to think about how a snake moves.
Mindful Movement: Encourage them to take deep, slow breaths as they move, mimicking the way a snake might “breathe” while navigating a path.
Up the Snakes: Add a little friendly competition by timing the activity and see if they can improve their speed!
6. Snake Wisdom Scavenger Hunt
Hide small toy snakes or snake cut-outs around the house or garden, each with a wisdom quote or snake fact attached. Children will enjoy searching for the snakes, practice reading and maybe learn a little something too!
Example Facts & Quotes:
- “Did you know snakes smell with their tongues?”
- “Nothing is impossible, the word itself says ‘I’m possible’!”
- “You miss 100% of the shots you don’t take.”
- “Snakes shed their skin to grow – what’s something new you’ve learned recently?”
7. Snake-Themed Word Search
Create a word search filled with snake-related vocabulary such as “scales,” “slither,” “shed,” and “wisdom.” This activity boosts spelling, vocabulary and word recognition while tying into the Year of the Snake theme.
Custom Fun: Did you know you can make your own wordsearches on Busy Things? Give it a try free: Busy Things free trial.
8. Grow Your Snake Wisdom
Plan a trip to a zoo or reptile sanctuary, perhaps find somewhere that offers handling experiences. If a face-to-face encounter isn’t possible, do some online research and watch nature programmes. Encourage children to observe snakes, be curious and ask questions – look at how they move, find out where they live and what they eat. How many snake species are there? What’s the biggest or smallest snake?
Extend the Learning: Create a snake fact file together. Busy Things has a perfect template to make it easy: Fact file template.
9. Snake Transformation Art
Use shaving cream and food colouring to create marbled patterns that resemble snake scales. Children can mix colours and experiment with textures, representing transformation.
Conversation Starter: While working, discuss how snakes shed their skin to grow, just as the art transforms when the colours mix.
Snake Fun Fact: Share how snakes’ patterns can help them hide from predators or warn others to stay away!
10. Make a Snake Tangraminal
Tangrams are ancient Chinese puzzles that are made from seven different shapes: five triangles, one square and one parallelogram. The aim of the puzzle is to form a specific shape using all the pieces with none overlapping – can you make a snake?
Tangram Challenge: There are 23 Tangranimal challenges within in our FREE Chinese New Year activity pack, can you make them all?
11. Snake Bookmarks
Create snake-shaped bookmarks, decorate them with colourful patterns and add inspiring quotes about wisdom and transformation.
Some Wisdom Quotes for Kids ideas…
- “Don’t let what you cannot do interfere with what you can do.”
- “The expert in anything was once a beginner.”
- “Believe you can, and you’re halfway there.”
- “Our greatest glory is not in never falling, but in rising every time we fall.”
Bonus Activity: Use the bookmarks in a special reading session about Chinese New Year or snakes in nature.
12. Snake Growth Chart
Make a snake-shaped growth chart on the wall where children can mark their height over time. Talk about how snakes grow and shed their skin, then relate it to how they’re always growing, too.
Conversation Starter: Ask your child what other ways they’ve “grown” this year – perhaps they’ve learned a new skill or faced a challenge with bravery.
Chinese New Year Activities on Busy Things:
Don’t forget to check out Busy Things for more Year of the Snake activity ideas and Chinese New Year-themed fun! Busy Things is packed with activities designed to encourage learning through laughter and play!
Chinese New Year Fireworks: Children can use our paint tools to create a spectacular fireworks display!
Chinese dragons and lions: Children can design Chinese Lions and Dragons, experimenting with colour and patterns.
Children will love to watch their puzzles come to life in Tangraminals! Our version of the ancient Chinese puzzle of Tangrams.
Chinese Zodiac colouring: Children can discover the 12 animals of the Chinese Zodiac and give them a colourful makeover.
Chinese Zodiac colouring: Decorate Chinese lanterns for Chinese New Year lantern festival. Children can use colour, textures and patterns to decorate their lantern.
You can try all the Chinese New Year themed learning activities on Busy Things completely FREE! Try Busy Things FREE for 7 days – no card details needed!
Get Started with these Year of the Snake Activity Ideas
The Year of the Snake is a perfect opportunity to connect with your children through creativity, storytelling, and exploration. Try a few (or all!) of these activities and let the Snake inspire your family Chinese New Year celebrations.